Mikaiah Lei of The Bots performs onstage during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. FRAZER HARRISON, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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Big Boi (L) and Andre 3000 of Outkast perform onstage during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club on April 11, 2014 in Indio, California. (Photo by Karl Walter/Getty Images for Coachella) KARL WALTER GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

Lisa Cole, left, and boyfriend Ralzotti Duffield watch the set of Anthony Green during day one of the 2014 Coachella Music and Arts Festival on Friday. CHRIS PIZZELLO, INVISION/AP

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Jack Moffitt (left) and singer Isabella Manfredi of The Preatures perform onstage during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival KEVIN WINTER, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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Music fan Hannah Vollet of San Diego, wearing a top from LF, shorts from Forever 21 and Minnetonka Boots attends day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. IMEH AKPANUDOSEN, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

Gideon Bensen of The Preatures performs onstage during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. KEVIN WINTER, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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GOAT performs onstage during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club on Friday. FRAZER HARRISON, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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Ellie Goulding performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival on Friday. INVL

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Fans dance during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. KEVIN WINTER, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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Lizzy Plapinger, left, and Max Hershenow of MS MR perform during the band's set on day one of the 2014 Coachella Music and Arts Festival on Friday. CHRIS PIZZELLO, INVISION/AP

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Woody Reveles, left, and Imanda Gordon of San Diego dance to the set of Anthony Green during day one of the 2014 Coachella Music and Arts Festival on Friday. CHRIS PIZZELLO, INVISION/AP

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Hannah Hooper of Grouplove performs onstage during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club on Friday. KEVIN WINTER, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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Coachella festivalgoers arrive at Empire Polo Field on day one of the 2014 Coachella Music and Arts Festival on Friday. CHRIS PIZZELLO, INVISION/AP

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A fan walks on stilts during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. KEVIN WINTER, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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Kaycie Hall, of Modesto performs a handstand on the Empire Polo Field during day one at the 2014 Coachella Music and Arts Festival on Friday. CHRIS PIZZELLO, INVISION/AP

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A fan shows off her festival attire during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. MATT COWAN, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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Isabella Manfredi of the Preatures performs onstage during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. KEVIN WINTER, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

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Jennie Garth gets a first taste of the new Wonka Randoms at The Music Lounge at Coachella, on Friday, April 11, 2014 in Palm Springs, Calif. (Photo by Casey Rodgers/Invision for Wonka/AP Images) CASEY RODGERS, INVISION FOR WONKA/AP IMAGES

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Escape Velocity art installation by Poetic Kinetics is seen during day 1 of the 2014 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. MARK DAVIS, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

Fans pose for a photo during day 1 of the 204 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. CHRISTOPHER POLK, GETTY IMAGES FOR COACHELLA

UPDATE: Reviews of performances by Ellie Goulding, Broken Bells, Haim and more. Click through this post for all of our Coachella 2014 day 1 coverage.

Goat survives the heat, Austra impresses

It's hot enough on the Outdoor Stage at 1:30 p.m. on Friday but you've got to figure it's even rougher on a band like Goat.

Who come from Sweden.

And wear elaborate face-covering masks and full-length robes.

But happily, as our Coachella 2014 got underway, Goat didn't seem a bit fazed by the environment, burning through a hot set of Afro-beat-inspired psychedelic-fuzzed-out rock 'n roll.

The masks plus a self-invented origin mythology left us uncertain of the names of the seven players in the band but the two women who front the group were exciting to watch – whirling and dancing around the stage – and hear on songs like "Run to Your Mama."

And they did feel the heat we can report: at the of their set, one of the Goat women poured water on her bare feet, pointed at the sun and pantomimed fanning her hooves, er, feet.

Across the way in Mojave, blues-rocker ZZ Ward had the benefit of the tent above her stage though the security guys still took mercy on fans packed at the front, spraying them with water as Ward and her tight three-piece band thrilled fans with songs including a stomping take on "365 Days" and "Last Love Song."

The 27-year-old out of Oregon has a soulful voice and the chops to switch between guitar, keyboards and harmonica. By the the penultimate song her set, "Move Like U Stole It," she had the crowd dancing and singing along.

Next door in the Gobi Tent two surprises awaited us: the first one was the tents’ new look, black curtains to close off the sides, eight huge crystal-like chandeliers hanging overhead, the effect was to create a massive outdoor super club feeling.

The second delight was midway through their set onstage, Austra, a four-piece electronic band from Toronto. Fronted by singer Katie Stelmanis, the band evoked a bit of the New Romantics of the early '80s, and thanks to Stelmanis' big classically trained voice, a bit of Florence Welch, too.

Programmed synths, a propulsive bass and drum pattern, that voice - by they time they wrapped up with the song "Lose It" we were all on board with Austra.

– PETER LARSEN

Ladies dominate sets during day 1 of Coachella

Never let it be said that there aren't enough female artists at Coachella.

This year's afternoon kickoff certainly has had a number of men in the mix, including the debut of singer-songwriter Tom Odell at noon, Circa Survive's Anthony Green toned down the hardcore fury to sound more pleasant for a cloudy slot on the main stage, as well as discordant punk-sludge outfit Title Fight, who are on a tent away from me in Mojave as I write this. But it's the ladies who have been dominating the festival since gates opened this morning and the first wave of this weekend's capacity crowd started trickling in.

Granted, the overlap among sets has been so tight that it's been hard to see much more than 20 minutes of anyone before feeling that familiar urge to bail quickly in hopes of discovering something greater somewhere else.

I floated from the increasingly atmospheric "newgaze" of Wye Oak (the previously lo-fi Baltimore duo fronted by guitarist Jenn Wasser) to the mellow folk of Waxahatchee, though that moniker's motivator, Katie Crutchfield, struggled to capture attention from an already lethargic gathering inside the Mojave tent.

Outside, the masked and dashiki-donning mystery girls of Goat were faring better at attracting eyes to that band's heady rush of psych-rock, Afrobeat and shrieks straight out of the early B-52's, while roots-rocker ZZ Ward showed off her legs and blew some mean harmonica for the Bonnaroo contingent that has traveled to Indio. All of that was a far more interesting prospect than the plinking, percussive wispiness of Austra, whose would-be chanteuse in a red-orange getup strangely hid her face beneath a floppy hat.

After such a satisfying appetizer, the speedy energy and gothic-pop appeal of L.A.'s terrific Dum Dum Girls ought to have been the first genuine standout of the day. Instead, as with Austra (who fought with a fussy keyboard), the group had to contend with technical glitches and being "down a guitar," sapping momentum from the get-go as squalls of feedback killed time between songs. Vocalist Dee Dee tried valiantly to stir some excitement once the sound got squared away, utilizing both her mildly beguiling voice (with heavy shades of Siouxise Sioux) and her alluring look, a pale pixie in pasties and a sheer black top. That held us for ... maybe another five minutes. The crowd was even less enthusiastic, barely registering any reaction.

Thankfully, just the opposite was occurring at the main stage, where NYC duo MS MR drew a large crowd (particularly for a 3 p.m. performance) and delivered the first genuine standout set of Day 1. Credit that success less to the male band, however, than singer Lizzy Plapinger. With her shocking pink hair, one-piece short-short outfit covered in agape mouths as if cribbed from a Tool cover, and platform boots that Marilyn Manson might covet, she was a beaming breath of sultry air, suffusing even the breezy single "Fantasy" with an extra lift and bringing an almost erotic lilt to a sharp (if recent) cover choice: Arctic Monkeys' moody crawl "Do I Wanna Know?"

That turn, worth skipping other sets for, has given a shot of buoyancy to a somewhat slow and balmy afternoon out here, where seemingly half of the 90,000 strong masses have yet to arrive. If they're lucky, they'll be on the polo field in time for Haim, Kate Nash and, most of all, Neko Case just before sundown. If not, they'll have missed what likely will be the peak of today's femme quotient.

- BEN WENER

Smaller acts step it up at Coachella

It's always fun to see a band's success reflected in their Coachella bookings, and especially where and when they're slotted into the lineup. The L.A.-based indie pop band Grouplove played in one of the tents last time they were here. On Friday, they moved up to a late afternoon slot on the main stage and turned in a set worth ever bit of the honor.

With singers Hannah Hooper and Christian Zocconi bouncing back and forth across the stage -- his hair bright blue, hers platinum blonde - they were fun to watch as the heat of the day first started to fade. But it's the music that gets you invited back and Grouplove's infectiously catchy songs had a crowded field dancing and singing to tunes such as "Tongue Tied" and "Ways to Go."

It's a good sign when even songs that might touch on sadder topics leave the players and the fans smiling, and that's exactly how Grouplove left the stage.

At the other end of the Coachella booking equation is the dilemma of what to do with a first-timer with a few big hits. If you listen to pop radio you've heard the English band Bastille's single "Pompei" but maybe not much else. Booked into the Mojave late Friday, they drew a crowd that spilled a few hundred feet outside the huge tent in every direction.

There's good reason for their popularity, for while "Pompei" might be their catchiest tune other songs such as "Flaws" and "Icarus" were equally melodic and crowd-pleasing anthems.

Once Bastille wrapped its set with its hit we slipped across to Gobi for the final half of English singer-songwriter Kate Nash's set. Dressed in something akin to a pink punk fairy godmother's getup, and backed by an all-woman all-pink-wearing band, Nash's sweetly anarchic music spoke of standing up for one's self and settling for less that what you deserve.

When she wrapped up the music Nash hopped off the stage and spent the next 15 minutes giving hugs to fans, posing for photos and sincerely listening to their compliments and questions. Truly a special little moment from a 26-year-old whose talent is equalled by her class.

- PETER LARSEN

Sets heat up as the sun goes down

Night has fallen on Day 1, and as Chromeo bangs away at Dre & 2Pac's "California Love" for a minute, declaring that "Coachella knows how to party," the outdoor main-stage bacchanal that will peak with Girl Talk and OutKast (with a speculated cameo from Prince?) has begun to build, helped considerably by a reenergizing shot in the arm from Ellie Goulding at sundown.

She drew thousands more than Chromeo has at the moment, though perhaps that's because a good chunk of the crowd decided to keep chilling over at the Outdoor Theatre. That's where a silken paisley print of a performance is happening from Broken Bells, the dreamy yet soulful side project of Danger Mouse (back again after debuting here years ago with Gnarls Barkley) and a frequent Coachella visitor, Shins leader James Mercer.

Sounded pretty great, a near-replica of their latest album, After the Disco; walking away as they played the falsetto-tinged single "Holding on to Life," I could've sworn DM had just thrown the record on and cranked up the volume. Goulding, on the other hand, brought a relentlessness to her set that not only enlivened lookie-loos, it gently jolted her material, so air-tight in studio versions but so much better out here today -- authentic, almost organic, consistently compelling.

With bling down the middle of her forehead and black running shoes to match a skimpy black outfit, the British star burst out of the lulling coma her pretty dance-pop can create and delivered a harder-hitting set akin to the convincing winners she has brought to festivals at home and in Europe. Once or twice she seemed a bit overwhelmed at the turnout, but rather than shying away, she wagged her blond mane straight into the face of this desert challenge. Until now, I've found her competent but borderline vapid, and definitely dull.

This was just the opposite: When she bounced through first "Anything Could Happen" and then "Lights," the field finally erupted for the first time this evening. And Goulding's willingness throughout her set to push admittedly tender vocals into throatier territory, conjuring some of the grit of Pink, suggests there's more bite to this songbird's coo after all.

Something similar could be said of Haim, the San Fernando Valley sisters whose music, so over-polished on record, gained a great deal more heft during an impressive desert debut earlier this afternoon. Their album, Days Gone By, sheathes their virtuosities in slick throwbacks to '80s pop and R&B; their live set pushes much of that gloss aside in favor of adding meat to their leaner song structures. When eldest sibling Este took a break from making her increasingly famous "bass face" (one fan even had it emblazoned on a held-aloft sign) to evoke memories of the three young women jamming on a Persian rug in their parents' house, the results -- a rip through Fleetwood Mac's oft-tackled groove "Oh Well" that made up in dexterity what it lacked in muscle -- seemed as if designed to prove just what sort of chops Haim possess. Theirs is a still-burgeoning talent that in 10 years time could become something as fierce as it is commercially salable.

And that seems to be the most favored blend here: something fresh with major potential. Legacy acts like the Replacements (taking the stage to a meager turnout as I wrap up this post) and the Afghan Whigs (culling an even smaller crowd in Mojave) and the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion (ditto in Gobi, though their devotees gave a heartier response) are all faring about as good as they might playing a night at the Wiltern or Fonda.

Even long-running punk-steeped AFI, a perennial KROQ attraction, lost out crowd-wise to Bastille, a new KROQ favorite that had an overflow Mojave tent chanting along with arms raised. And don't even ask about the great Neko Case; poor thing barely had an audience to play to on the second stage, and of those who did watch, at least half were uninterested and simply seeking shade.

Logically, then, the finest set I've seen today belongs to a current sensation with one foot firmly planted in the past and the other stretching just ahead of the present: Aloe Blacc, whose retro-soul delights -- leading with signature tune "I Need a Dollar" -- had a packed audience falling funkily into a giant group hug. Busting out wicked wiggle-foot moves to match both his dynamic vocals and the horn-bolstered punch of his band, the Laguna Hills native took an exuberant turnout to church, his grin infectiously spreading from one sweaty admirer to the next. An exceptional Coachella sampler from yet another strong new talent with untapped potential.

Unlike a personal fave like the 'Mats, who so far sound more solid than expected, but whose lack of relevance for today's Coachella couldn't be more glaring.

"There's been a lot of good music here today, hasn't there?" Paul Westerberg said to start their return. "Let's put a (bleeping) stop to that right now."

Off to see if Bryan Ferry fares any better. More tomorrow, once we've seen what OutKast has concocted.

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